UNH roundup: Paey wins again for Wildcats

DURHAM — Milton's Brice Paey won the shot put as the University of New Hampshire track teams hosted the Wildcat Invitational II on Saturday at the Atkins Track.

Paey's mark of 55 feet, 6.25 inches took the top spot. Tyler Dinn won the 1,500-meter run in three minutes, 59.31 seconds. The Wildcats' 4x400 meter relay team of Isaiah Penn, Nicholas Sullivan, Andrew Albin and Sean Mitchell finished first in a time of 3:23.75.

On the women's side, Allison Brehm won the 100 meters in 11.86 seconds and the 200 in 25.31 seconds. Rosemary Read won the hammer throw (173-11) and Danica Goodheart won the triple jump with a leap of 37-10.

@Subhead:UNH women's lax loses

STONY BROOK, N.Y. ¿ The UNH women's lacrosse team fell 12-10 at Stony Brook in a game that eliminated the Wildcats from America East Tournament contention.

UNH, which had advanced to the league tourney each of the past 14 years, fells to 5-10 overall and 2-4 in the league. Stony Brook improved to 13-4, 5-1 in AE.

Amber Casiano scored thrice to lead UNH, which wraps up its season Tuesday at Boston College.

@Subhead:Keagins up for Fans' Choice Award

DURHAM — Kate Keagins, a senior midfielder and captain on the University of New Hampshire women's lacrosse team, is one of seven nominees on the ballot for the 2012 America East Women's Lacrosse Fans' Choice Player of the Year award. Keagins was also a nominee in 2010 and 2011.

Voting, which is taking place on the league's Facebook page — www.facebook.com/AmericaEast — is open now and continues until 12 p.m.today. The winners will be announced that afternoon.

@Subhead:Mann earns swimming award

SOMERS, Wis. — Freshman swimmer Katie Mann was tabbed as a Mid-Major All-American Honorable Mention honoree Friday afternoon by CollegeSwimming.com. She was just one of three female swimmers from the America East conference to earn the distinction.

Mann played a vital role in the success of the Wildcats this past season. She swam to 11 solo first-place finishes while breaking two conference records and a pool record at Siena (10/15). She also was named America East Women's Rookie of the Year and garnered the America East Most Outstanding Swimmer Award for 2011.

@Subhead:Puccia receives AE rookie of the week award

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Laura Puccia, a freshman midfielder on the University of New Hampshire women's lacrosse team, was named America East Rookie of the Week by the league office on Monday afternoon. Puccia has received the honor twice this season, as she was previously feted March 26.

Puccia recorded eight points (six goals, two assists) as well as one ground ball and two draw controls to lead UNH to victory against Columbia University (14-8) and UMBC (12-11) last week.

@Subhead:Maquire sets school record at Penn Relays

PHILADELPHIA ¿ Junior Keely Maguire set a school record in the 3,000 meters as the University of New Hampshire track & field teams opened competition at the prestigious Penn Relays on Thursday.

Maguire finished sixth in the 24-runner field in the College Championship division of the 3,000 meters, crossing the finish line in a time of 9:33.76. Maguire, the lone UNH women's competitor, set a new school record in the event and also qualified for the ECAC Championships.

Maguire placed 13th in the 10,000 meters at the Penn Relays last season and went on to capture a New England title and qualify for the NCAA East Regional in the event.

@Subhead:Cooper competes in Olympic Trials

DURBAN, South Africa — Freshman Oneida Cooper of the University of New Hampshire swimming and diving team completed her final event at the South African Olympic Trials on Thursday, April 19 at the Kings Park Aquatic Center.

Cooper, a native of South Africa, wrapped the six-day competition with an eighth place finish in the 200-meter individual medley. She registered a time of 2:22.77 in the event.

Cooper started things off on Monday in the 100-meter fly event where she placed ninth with a time of 1:04.59.

On Tuesday, she moved onto the 100-meter backstroke event. She tallied an overall time of 1:06.58 and swam to a ninth place finish.

@Subhead:Gymnasts honored at banquet

DURHAM — Senior co-captain Ali Carr was crowned the University of New Hampshire gymnastics team's MVP and classmate Danielle Reibold was tabbed the winner of the Katie Baldwin Academic Excellence Award for the second year in a row and third time overall. Those announcements were made Sunday as part of the team's postseason banquet at Holloway Commons.

Hannah Barile received the Most Improved Award on the heels of a consistent sophomore season, in particular on floor exercise, where she thrice hit for a career-high 9.850 and established the team-high floor score four times, including two first-place results.

Co-captain Courtney Connors was honored with the Most Inspirational Award. The junior rallied back from a mid-season injury that sidelined her for three meets to serve as an integral vault competitor over the final eight competitions and 10 of 13 overall.

The Gatos Award was presented to senior Tasia Percevecz for her commitment to the University's strength and conditioning program.

Associate head coach Ed Datti and assistant coach Jess Kelley were recognized for being tabbed the 2012 EAGL Assistant Coaches of the Year and the NCAA Northeast Regional Assistant Coaches of the Year. Senior associate athletic director for compliance/senior women's administrator Michelle Bronner was lauded for being the recipient of the Northeast Regional Administrator of the Year award.

Head coach Gail Goodspeed capped the proceedings by announcing that Connors and Jen Aucoin had been selected by their teammates as the 2012-13 co-captains.

@Subhead:Women's hoop team feted

DURHAM — The University of New Hampshire women's basketball team closed out the 2011-12 season with its annual awards banquet Saturday afternoon at Cartelli's restaurant in Dover.

New Hampshire's coaching staff recognized seniors Denise Beliveau, Kelley Flynn and Abigail LaRosa for their years of dedication and commitment to the women's basketball program. Second-year head coach Maureen Magarity and her staff also handed out a trio of individual awards.

Beliveau was named the team's Most Valuable Player for the second-straight season after leading the squad in rebounding (8.6) and adding 14.1 points per game.

Sophomore Kelsey Hogan was honored with the Coaches' Award for the second time in as many seasons.

In addition to being recognized as a senior, LaRosa was presented with the Most Improved Player Award after an impressive final go-around as a Wildcat this past season.

Flynn capped off her UNH career with a strong senior campaign, leading the lineup with 22 total blocks.

@Subhead:Men's hoop team honored

DURHAM — Four players received awards, the squad's three seniors were recognized and the team and its extended staff were recently honored at the annual, season-ending University of New Hampshire men's basketball awards banquet at Holloway Commons on the UNH campus.

Senior guard Alvin Abreu was recognized for his impressive season as he was named the team's Most Valuable Player for the second time after leading the Wildcats to double-digit wins for the fourth straight season.

Senior guard Ryan Herrion of Dover received the fifth annual Coach Gerry Friel Award, given to the player who best exemplifies teamwork, sportsmanship, perseverance and academics.

Senior forward Brian Benson garnered Rebounder of the Year honors for the second-straight year, finishing the season tied for first in the conference with 8.6 boards per contest.

Junior guard Chandler Rhoads earned the team's Defensive Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season.

The Wildcats put together another successful season, finishing their fourth straight season with double-digit victories. UNH went 13-16 overall, earning the No. 5 seed in the America East tournament, but fell to fourth-seeded Albany in the quarterfinals.

@Subhead:Men's soccer holds awards banquet

DURHAM — The University of New Hampshire men's soccer team honored its players at their annual awards banquet on April 22 at Holloway Commons.

The senior class consisting of Brad Hilton, Alex Russell and Caleb Shaw were among the honorees for their contributions as members of the program. The trio led the 'Cats to a 32-28-14 record over their four years and played key roles in earning the 2009 America East regular-season title as well as being the 2010 America East Championship runner-up team.

Jordan Thomas was named the recipient of the Glenn Aborn Award for the Most Improved Player.

Hilton received the Walter Weiland Award for the Most Dedicated Player for the third-consecutive year as well as the Robert Black Award for the Most Valuable Player.

Shaw earned the Harvey Johnson Award as the team's Most Inspirational Player for his dedication to the squad. Freshman David Schlatter picked up his first award as the H. Richard Sandler Award for Academic Achievement.

Freshman keeper Travis Worra was honored by America East as a unanimous selection to the All-Rookie Team.

Ryan McNabb, Gustav Nilsson, Jeffrey Turner, Hilton and Russell were also recognized by America East as they were tabbed to the All-Academic Team.

@Subhead:Keding named volleyball MVP

DURHAM — Senior Amy Keding of the University of New Hampshire volleyball team was named the Holly Young Most Valuable Player at the 2011 team awards banquet on the UNH campus on Saturday afternoon.

Freshman Sam Henke was the recipient of the Ed Jentes Coaches' Award.

Senior Jessy Dick was named the Judy Ray Academic Excellence Award winner for having the highest GPA on the team for the third-straight season.

Junior Jansan Falcusan was named the second-ever recipient of the Franklin Taylor Scholarship Award. In addition, Falcusan was named a team captain for the second-straight season. Fellow junior Jessie Schnepp and sophomore Morgan Thatcher will also join Falcusan as tri-captains next season.

The Wildcats will open the 2012 season on August 24 at the Villanova Classic.